MS Diet Tips For Success From My Daily Routine

17th November 2012

As I have mentioned in some of my previous posts, my daily lifestyle has had a major overhaul. It has been a year and a half since I made the change and I have never looked back. I have always tried to be healthy, eating loads of fruit and skipping pizza and hamburgers in favour of sushi and wraps. However, it wasn’t until I started The MS Diet that I realised what it is to eat foods that truly nourish and heal. I have had to get rid of old habits and develop many new ones such as ingesting as much many fresh green foods as I can. I have had many requests to share what I eat on a daily basis and so I have put together a typical MS diet day in my life. I will also share some tips on how to make your meals more organised and tasty.

7-8am Supplement Sunrise

7am is usually wake up call time, normally via my two children! I like to start off the day by drinking my green barley juice first and then I gulp down all of my supplements. I take ten different supplements which actually translates to downing fourteen tablets/pills and as I’m sure most of you know, this can be a bit of a chore.

I have all my various supplements lined up on a dedicated shelf and each morning, I open each one, take out the required dose, close the lid again and replace it on the shelf. Not rocket science but a bit labour intensive. If I’m in a rush or still a bit sleepy, I can easily miss one. I have recently made this whole process a lot quicker and more organised!

I purchased a pill box that was actually being sold as a bead organiser (most pill boxes don’t have large enough compartments for all my supplements). It has ten compartments that each hold one day’s portion of supplements. This is a brilliant time saver and ensures that I don’t accidentally skip any.

MS Diet Tips for Success

Take all your supplements first thing in the morning. This will allow your body to quickly absorb the nutrients and start using them to get you going. You are also less likely to forget to take them if you do this before you get into the rush of a busy day.

Make sure you drink a tall glass of water with your supplements. This will rehydrate your body after the long night.

Buy a pill organising box and organise your supplements for the week so that you don’t need to open and close each bottle every day. You could even label each compartment for each day of the week. You may also be able to find something on the internet (if you do, please let me know!)

8-9am Breakfast Booster

I have breakfast about thirty minutes after I have taken my supplements. As there are so many of them, I feel the need to let them digest a bit before eating real food. They also keep the hunger at bay so I don’t feel too starving. Generally, my breakfast options are:

Fruit salad with nuts (mostly almonds)

Fruit smoothie with nuts

Raw juice

Adding nuts to your fruit can keep you feeling full for much longer. Almonds are always a good choice because they are the only nuts that leave an alkaline residue in your blood. All fruit will leave your blood more alkaline which is important because the more acidic your body fluids are, the greater chance you have of developing a disease. Pretty much all of the foods on the MS diet are alkaline forming anyway, so you don’t need to worry about this too much. My favourite fruits to eat are strawberries, mangoes, blueberries and grapes. I also love extracting apple juice and blending it with pineapple pieces. It comes out really frothy and tastes like a healthy milkshake.

I drink a raw juice for breakfast when I’m feeling a little tired or run down. I usually like to juice apples, carrots, kale and ginger – my favourite raw juice is the carrot and apple zinger – it is also highly anti-inflammatory which should help to improve MS symptoms. Ginger gives you a nice zing and really gets you going in the morning.

MS Diet Tips for Success

Eat fruit first thing in the morning as it will stabilise your blood sugar levels and leave an alkaline residue in your blood and other bodily fluids. It also helps to prepare your stomach for breakfast.

Add nuts to your fruit to give substance to your breakfast. Blend them with your fruit if you don’t feel like chewing them.

Raw juice will give you the ‘pick me up’ you need when you are not feeling so great as it is quickly absorbed into the blood stream. Drinking it on an empty stomach, first thing in the morning is brilliant because your body will digest it quickly and easily, causing vital nutrients to wash into your cells, which will happily lap up all the good nutrients immediately.

10-11am Morning Snack

I start to get a bit peckish at this time and so I have a few quick and handy snacks ready. Pecans are my favourite nut and I will have a handful of those most days. A nut, seed and driedfruitmix is also very useful when it comes to snack time. A few handfuls will definitely keep you going until lunch time. You can also reach for some raw vegetables like carrotsticks, cherrytomatoes, greenbeans or celerysticks.

MS Diet Tips for Success

Plan ahead to have these snacks available, its no use getting the stage where you are hungry, and then eating things you know you shouldn’t.

Make sure snacks are within arms reach and within eyesight. Try putting fruit in a bowl on the counter top, so its right there when you need it. Open the packet if its in a container, you are more likely to eat from it.

Hide any food you know you shouldn’t be eating at the start of the day – this is when your motivation is the strongest, and then at least there are less temptations to worry about.

Make sure that the dried fruit is free from preservatives such as sulphur dioxide.

1-2pm Lovely Lunchtime

After feeding my children and cleaning up the large mess that is left, I can now focus on my lunch. By this time of the day I am desperate to just sit down and have a break while the kids sleep. I need a quickandeasy but substantial meal. I do feel that lunch is an important opportunity to eat foods that are not only filling but will help me get my daily quota of greenvegetables and brightlycolouredfruit /vegetables. I used to be no fuss lunch person and would just grab the quickest and easiest thing I could lay my hands on. Usually this was a couple of rice cakes with a bunch of spinach leaves, olives and olive oil. However, I found that if I didn’t eat something more substantial at lunch, I began to feel tired and hungry by 5pm and then I would snack on the kids’ left overs or something else I shouldn’t be eating.

So, what do I eat? First, before I even start preparing my food, I down a tall glass of water. It is actually a pint sized glass. This helps keep me hydrated which is as important as being nourished. While I let my body absorb the water, I start preparing my food. I love eating salads with loads of lovely fresh ingredients such as spinach, rocket, cucumber, tomato, spring onions and avocado. I usually top this with some sweet potato, potato or have corn on the cob on the side. Sometimes I will steam a variety of veggies for 10-15 minutes. Broccoli, cauliflower and sweet potato don’t take long in the steamer and taste amazing when covered with olive oil and a bit of herb salt. When I have some gluten-free bread around, an avocado, spinach and tomato sandwich is yummy! You can also eat last night’s left-overs. These are just a few ways to make lunchtime a culinary event without it taking up too much of your valuable time.

MS Diet Tips for Success

Eating a good lunch helps you to avoid those moments of weakness that seem to pop out of nowhere in during the afternoon.

Drink a tall glass of water before food preparation begins – this lines the gut and allows for better digestion of nutrients.

Cook enough food for dinner the previous night so that you have instant left-overs for lunch the next day.

Add veggies and nuts to salads to make them more filling – use a wide variety of nuts as this will ensure broad nutrient intake.

Steaming veggies is a quick and healthy way to prepare them and makes for a delicious and very satisfying meal.

Drizzling olive oil and sprinkling herb salt over most meals will increase the tastiness factor dramatically!

4-5pm Afternoon Snack

I’m generally still quite full from lunch over most of the afternoon but if I do feel like eating something then this is a good opportunity for some more fruit. I’ll have an apple, a bunch of grapes or a few more nuts and dried fruit pieces. You could also try some plain air-popped popcorn.

MS Diet Tips for Success

Often its thirst that makes you think you are hungry – if you haven’t had at least 4 glasses of water by this stage of the day, its time to catch up!

Take a 10 minute break and go for a quick walk – this will revitalise your body and get oxygen pumping in your veins again.

Multitasking while you snack can make you eat more if your mind is preoccupied with other things – it may not receive the ‘I’m full!’ message clearly.

Manage your stress as this can lead to snacks through out the day, especially in the afternoon as your body starts to tire before dinner.

7-8pm Dinner Deserved

Most Moms will know that the time between 5pm and 7pm can be tricky. The kids needs to be fed and bathed. Teeth need to be brushed and stories need to be told. Generally, kids decide that this is the time of day that they want to misbehave a little so it can be a bit of a marathon to get through to bed time! I’m usually exhausted when they are finally down for the night and my husband and I breathe a huge sigh of relief and give each other a few high fives. Now to start thinking about dinner! I find that if I have not planned what we are going to eat then it all becomes a bit overwhelming at that time of night. However, if i know what I’m going to be making, it is far less of a chore. I would hopefully have the vegetables chopped or the fish out of the freezer in advance and then all I need to do is pop them into the steamer or oven.

I find that I stick to a few regular dishes most nights and vary them slightly. Once a week I like to try something new to keep things interesting. I am loving salmon at the moment and will often have a salmon fillet with vegetables or a salad. Salmon is such a tasty, tender fish that just melts in your mouth. I always feel like I am having a big treat! Stay tuned for some salmon recipes.

Sometimes I have a very similar meal to lunch. Salad and cooked veggies is always a winner. I have recently discovered an amazing quinoa cottage pie recipe which you can view in the recipes section. My husband even enjoyed this! I also love rice with veggies. Gluten-free pasta is another winner and makes for a versatile ingredient with which you can toss any variety of vegetables. The possibilities and combinations are actually endless! Who ever said that this way of eating was limited? You are just discovering a whole new side to food!

MS Diet Tips for Success

Remember to drink your tall glass of water while you are preparing your dinner – this prepares you body for the main meal and adds another glass to your quota.

Plan your meals weekly – this will take the pressure off deciding what you are going to eat that night, especially after a long day, you are also more likely to try new things and view meal preparation as a joy not a chore!

Make a list of all the meals in your repertoire and add one new meal each week or two – this keeps you motivated and not bored with the same food.

Use measuring cups where possible to track the amount of foods you consume (don’t overdo the monitoring, but you should know roughly how many of cups of fruit and vegetables you eat every day – this should be around 9 cups daily!).

9pm-10pm The Best Time of Day

I often feel that this time of day is my reward for getting through the day. Don’t get me wrong, I love being a mother and caring for my gorgeous children but there comes a time when you just need a little peace and relaxation. We eat our delicious, nutritious food and then maybe watch a little TV. ‘Downton Abbey’ and ‘Greys Anatomy’ are firm favourites! My husband does a tea run at around 9:30pm and I will have a mug of herbal tea with some honey in it. The perfect way to end off the day!

MS Diet Tips for Success

Don’t consume too much food just before bed time. Give your stomach time to digest before you go to sleep.

If you have’t had your 8th glass of water, try get that out the way before you start preparing for bed.

Avoid any teas and coffee that contain caffeine, as this may upset your sleep patterns and cause sleepless nights.

Ensure you dont go to bed too late, you need all the rest you can give your body to keep functioning healthy. I try aim for at least 8 hours sleep, and ensure I dont go to bed after 10:30pm.

Conclusion

I hope this gives you a little more insight into my daily life and how my MS Diet has become part of my lifestyle. It has taken a while for it to become this way and there were days that I really struggled to keep up with it and missed my old way of eating. Slowly but surely it has become completelynatural and easier as I have pushed through. Now, I hardly ever crave the wrong foods, knowing how they will make me feel and how they will affect my condition.

I hope you are finding success in your quest to switch to the MS Diet! If you have any tips you would like to share with all of us, please feel free to drop them into a comment below.

Hi Corrie, thanks comment! I’m so happy you found this useful, my goal is to reduce the effort and research needed so we can get as many MS’ers fighting their way to better health! Alternatives to kale you could try (not as potent, but still very good for you): anything green and leafy; spinach, broccoli, red romaine lettuce, chard, celery, cabbage, beet greens, turnip greens, mustard greens. Kale is easily grown too!